New Delhi: The Punjab and Haryana High Court has commuted a man’s death sentence to life term for raping and murdering a five-year-old girl in 2018, while acquitting his mother of charges of conspiracy to save him, observing that women often have “blind love for their precious sons”, and regard them as “Raja betas” no matter how imperfect or villainous they might be.
Kamla Devi was convicted by the trial court for “shielding” her son, and not allowing villagers to enter her home when they came for a search as the girl was last seen with the woman’s son.
“Unfortunately, in this part of India, family members, especially mothers, often have such blind love for their ‘precious’ sons that, no matter how imperfect or villainous they might be, they are still regarded as ‘Raja betas’,” a bench of justices Anoop Chitkara and Sukhvinder Kaur noted in its 62-page ruling.
“Kamla Devi, after discovering that her Raja-beta, “Bholu”, was not as gullible as his name suggested, and he had assaulted and brutally killed a girl-child aged five, prioritised shielding her son instead of informing the police or seeking justice (for her),” the ruling noted.
Terming this social attitude appalling, but “not new”, the bench said such an attitude is deeply embedded in the region’s patriarchal mindset and culture, and through this orthodox conditioning, the mother attempted to protect her “Raja beta”.
The court also said that in a civilised society, this kind of a barbaric incident would have resulted in shock on Kamla Devi’s part on learning her son murdered the girl, but she still tried to protect him rather than get justice for the late minor.
But, the court added, Kamla was trying to protect her “Raja beta” for which she cannot be punished under the Indian Penal Code, however condemnable her conduct might be. “There is no legally admissible evidence to make out a case for criminal conspiracy or for destruction of evidence against Kamla Devi”.
Consequently, the conviction and sentencing of Kamla Devi by the trial court for the offences punishable under Indian Penal Code sections 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence, or giving false information to screen offender) & 120-B (criminal conspiracy) were quashed and set aside, and she was acquitted of all the charges.
Also Read: India’s ‘Raja Beta’ culture: Here are five ways to raise your boys
Virender’s death sentence commuted
The court upheld the conviction of Vijender who was sentenced to death by the trial court in 2020 for raping a minor below 12 years of age, murder, causing the disappearance of evidence, among others.
But, the court modified his sentence from the capital punishment to life imprisonment, but added that he could not be released from prison until he has served 30 years of his sentence or “until he is closer to sunset of his virility”.
Although deterrence through the death penalty may still be a promising strategy in some frightful areas of murderous crime, the court observed that it would be right in this case to “accept composite factors of penal strategy and not to put all the punitive eggs in the ‘hanging’ basket but hopefully to try the humane mix”.
It appears that the subsequent murder was because of panic to destroy evidence of rape and not a premeditated act, the court also said while adding that the convict’s life should not be taken away by the judicial process.
Instead, to save children and females, he can be incapacitated by imposing a suitable sentence that is also proportionate to the heinous and gruesome crime of raping and killing a girl aged five, the court said, while sentencing him to life imprisonment.
The HC also referred to the Supreme Court’s 2011 ruling in the Rameshbhai Chandubhai case (where a class IV student was raped and murdered), and the 2019 ruling in the MD Mannan case of rape and murder of a an eight-year-old girl.
The HC said that the law is well-settled that death penalty is awarded only in exceptional cases.
2018 incident & conviction
The incident in which Virender was sentenced took place in May 2018 when the five-year-old girl went to see her father, who was a small-time tent installer, at work.
Her father had fallen asleep at the workplace after having lunch.
Taking advantage of the situation, Virender, who was one of her father’s colleagues, took hold of her and led her to his home, where he raped her and killed her with a kitchen knife, according to case details.
After this, he hid the body in a big kitchen container his mother would use to store flour. At that time, Virender’s mother Kamla had gone out for duty.
The girl’s father, meanwhile, returned home where he did not find his five-year-old. The entire family and relatives started searching for her. Later, the accused too joined the search efforts alongside the other villagers.
In the meantime, multiple villagers pointed out they last saw the girl with Virender, and he was taking her towards his home. Later, CCTV footage confirmed eyewitness accounts, showing the minor was walking while holding his hands.
The court also found that when the villagers were looking for the missing girl, Virender tried to mislead the search party.
During the search for the missing girl, Kamla Devi resisted people entering her house and switched off electricity. Also during the search, Kamla tried to disallow people a permission to search, but they insisted and entered her house.
When one of the eyewitnesses switched on her phone light, she spotted the girl’s body concealed in the drum kept in a corner of the house.
Subsequently, Virender was taken into custody. Police then managed to find the blood-soaked knife, broken into half, and hidden at Virender’s sister’s home.
After examining the evidence and circumstances on record, the court said, “Analysis of the evidence fully establishes that the chain of circumstances is complete, unbroken, and leads to the sole inference of Virender’s guilt beyond any reasonable doubt”.
In a nutshell, the court found him guilty of murdering and raping the five-year old girl.
The court also looked at factors like the mental health of Virender, which it found to be perfectly suitable. “To save the other kids and females, the convict must stay inside the four walls of the prison until he is closer to the Sunset of his virility,” the court said.
He was also directed to pay Rs 30 lakh fine which would be given to the girl’s family.
(Edited by Ajeet Tiwari)
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